It’s truly remarkable how malleable the human body is. A few focused months in the gym or a few months of eating fast food for three meals a day can send the human body skyrocketing into gains or spiraling into obesity. If you were to show me the two photos below separately I wouldn’t have believed you that he was only 2lbs apart in each photo, and if you were to tell me this bro’s story of bulking up and cutting down I’d say SHOW ME THE CARFAX, BRO (or something like that, because I still wouldn’t believe you).
The only reason I’m able to believe that this bro is only two pounds apart in each of these photos is because this story comes directly from the man himself, and he goes in depth on discussing how his weigh ballooned from 180 on up to 228, and how he’s gotten himself back down to 182-pounds, just two pounds above his pre-lifting weight.
First let’s take a look at the before/after photos in which there is only a weight difference of two pounds, below the pic is this bro’s fitness routine that got him up to 228 and back down to just above his pre-lifting weight:
Here is Sean’s story on how he was able to bulk up and get back down to just above pre-lifting weight (via r/fitness):
I am quickly approaching my pre lifting starting weight.
Back in 2012 I was completely untrained and skinny fat.I set out to change that, but got so caught up in putting on weight and strength, that my weight spiraled out of control. The highest I got was 228lbs. I got a lot stronger but at the cost of my health
Over the past year (+) Ive slowly lost weight (using food science principles found in The Renaissance Periodization book) and Im just not approaching my original starting weight. It’s crazy to see the difference.Nothing really special about diet or routine, I like to keep it simple. A large focus on compound movements for all my lifts (although lately Ive moved towards lower weight higher rep). I have a deadlift, squat, ohp and bench day. I generally follow 5/3/1 and try and throw in complementary compounds when I can (like front squats or close grip bench press). Accessory stuff I’ve been having fun with lately. Rows, flys, curls, hammer curls, chin ups, shrugs. I try a lot of different things and shoot for 3×10-15. As long as I get a good compound lift in, I’m happy, and the rest is for fun. With my huge reset I’m hitting reps in the 10-15 range now.
For food, I’m tracking every single piece of food I eat in Myfitnesspal. I generally keep my macros to .8g protein per lb, 1g carb per lb, and round out the rest in fat (usually around 60-70g total). I stick to basics like fish, chicken, rice, oatmeal, eggs, olive oil, peanut butter, etc but I’m not afraid to go iifym if I want some junk food, I just don’t make it a habit. I don’t have set cheat meals or days, I don’t like getting caught up in that mentality. Bottom line is its calories in, calories out for me, with a focus on macros.
That’s one hell of a body transformation, and not the kind that we’re accustomed to seeing on weightlifting forums. Usually it’s a bro who was skinny AF who figured out how to put on weight and was able to gain a ton of muscle mass, or it’s someone who was chunk as hell who cut all that fat and looks shredded. This one’s pretty cool, though 4.5 years is a long ass time.